File image.
President Donald Trump announced on July 13 that the United States is reinstating its blockade of Iranian ports and will be managing the Strait of Hormuz going forward, charging fees from vessels that transit the waterway in the process.
“The Hormuz Strait is OPEN, and will remain OPEN, with or without Iran,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
“We are reinstating the THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE, so named because it is only stopping Iran’s ships or customers from entering or leaving. All other countries will have fair and open use of the Strait,” he continued.
“The USA. will be, from this point forward, known as “THE GUARDIAN OF THE HORMUZ STRAIT,” but as such, and as a matter of FAIRNESS, will be reimbursed, at the rate of 20% on all cargo shipped, for any and all costs necessary to do the job of providing safety and security to this very volatile section of the World,” he added. “The process and formation will begin immediately.”
Trump’s announcement comes nearly one month after Washington signed a memorandum of understanding with Iran that barred Tehran from charging fees in the channel for 60 days.
It also comes amid clashes with Iran. The confrontation, which has so far remained limited in scale, erupted two days earlier after an Iranian attack on a commercial ship attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz without coordinating with authorities in the Islamic Republic.
Escalating further against Iran, Trump said later in the day that the Islamic Republic’s top military commanders have been killed, and claimed that Mojtaba Khamenei, son of late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and his successor, was “90% gone.”
Speaking in an interview with Fox News, the U.S. president said that the military capabilities of the Islamic Republic had been severely degraded.
“They have no navy. They have no air force. It’s all gone. Their anti-aircraft is gone. Their leaders have all been killed,” Trump said.
“Their best leaders have been killed. They’re gone. Khomeini is gone,” he said, using the name of the late Iranian revolutionary leader who died in 1989, while apparently referring to Ali Khamenei, who was killed on the first day of US-Israeli strikes on Iran in late February. “His son is 90% gone,” he added.
Mojtaba is said to be recovering from injuries suffered in the airstrike, and was not present at his father’s funeral ceremonies held this month in Iran and Iraq.
Trump’s remarks on Mojtaba could just be what he usually describes as “trash talk,” or a direct threat to the supreme leader.
In any case, all recent developments suggest that the memorandum of understanding may collapse soon. Most of the deal’s terms have already been violated, and with the reinstatement of the blockade on Iran, all the progress that had been made towards ending the war is very much gone.
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question: when does the prc and russian federation draw the biggest line by telling the u.$. and it’”$” wanton criminal gallery of hanging on by a thread supporters… that an attack on iran is an attack on the prc and russian federation?… and that if 0range caligula attempts to make “good” on this pledge the prc and russian federation will be removing themselves from un and all nation($) still supporting it!…
high time they rebuild international law and the rules of engagement through the briics. after today with this announcement the un is finished. and anyone who still remains within it is an abject liar and betrayer to the rule of law.
they attack iran, start a war, génocide palestinians and then taxe everyone 20% to provide “safety and security”. so jewish.
just one look at the diapered, decrepit, demented despot spouting this nonsense tells you who is actually 90% gone.
this is good for iran. never interrupt the enemy when making a mistake. the blockade was withdrawn last time from failure. repeating failure is a hallmark of this globalist greek tragedy. iran has not yet shown its strengths. it owns control over 20% of the world energy supply. far more powerful than a nuke